Cambodia celebrates King's 70th birthday with fireworks show

PHNOM PENH: Fireworks were fired into the sky over the Tonle Sap river in front of Cambodia's Royal Palace in the capital to mark the 70th birthday of Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni.

The colourful and eye-catching fireworks were on display for about 20 minutes on Sunday evening, Xinhua news agency reported.

Congratulatory messages from the leaders of the Senate, the National Assembly, and the government ministries have been read on television channels and radios, published on newspapers and posted on online media.

"On this great occasion, I would like to wish Your Majesty the King good health, strength, and longevity in order to stay as cool shade for the people of Cambodia," Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen said on Sunday in a congratulatory message to the monarch.

As in previous years, the King did not host any lavish celebrations on his birthday, but attended a Buddhist ceremony held at the Royal Palace.

King Norodom Sihamoni was born on May 14, 1953. He was inaugurated and formally anointed as the King of Cambodia on October 29, 2004, after his father the late King Norodom Sihanouk abdicated for health reasons.